Mass Effect 4 Needs To Innovate ‘Start by ditching Hoard Mode’

By Furious Francis Owner and editor-in-chief

I’m a huge Mass Effect fan. I have all the games across the Xbox 360 and PS3, and I intend on buying Mass Effect 3 Special Edition on the Wii U. However, Mass Effect 3 misfired on a few key points, but what really leaves a sour taste in my mouth with Mass Effect 3. Is the blatant laziness of copying Gears of War’s hoard mode, the annoying fetch quests that were useless, and the utter laziness of making all the original endings the same. Now that we know Mass Effect 4 is in development, here are some major features the game needs to have in order to return to its former ‘Mass Effect 2′ glory and innovate all together.

Gears of Effect Needs to stop

Gears of War is a great game, it does a lot of things right, but that doesn’t mean every developer should shoehorn hoard mode into their game’s multiplayer. Mass Effect 3’s multiplayer feels uninspired and dry. The series was built on innovation and new ideas. The original really took the concept of ‘RPG shooter’ to new levels, that many other companies have attempted to copy, like Sega with Alpha Protocol. Fighting through hoards of enemies in rounds, does not scream ‘Mass Effect’, it screams Gears of War. For Mass Effect 4, Bioware needs to ditch hoard mode and come up with something that is more unique to the Mass Effect style of gameplay.

Co-op Can Innovate, Hoard Mode Doesn’t

My mind races with all the possibilities campaign style co-op can introduce in Mass Effect 4. Imagine linking up with one of your buddies online for Mass Effect 4’s main story co-op, where the host is the main character and the second player can play as one of hosts party members, or import one of their own party members. Having the ability to explore different parts of the Citadel in a faster capacity would streamline and enhance the Mass Effect experience. Letting one user collect side quests in one part of the Citadel, while the other buys supplies from a different location, effectively gets time consuming tasks done quicker. Players can then transfer credit and resources gained in their friends game, back to their own game. Mass Effect already has a combo system with certain powers, imagine doing that with a live person instead. Co-op power combing could really change the way we battle in Mass Effect down to the core mechanics, this would make skirmishes a lot more fun and highly strategic. Mass Effect 4 needs to up the player count next generation to six in a squad and put each player in command with a platoon of two, in a separate multiplayer mode like Halo 4’s Spartan Ops. Players could import their party members and link up with a friend online, then engage in new story focused battles, separate from the main campaign. At the end of each level stats can be compared to decide which user battled more effectively. Having this could create competitive multiplayer without actually having real competitive multiplayer. Bioware could release new “N7 Ops” missions every month or so, with achievements and trophies to boot. The Wii U could also have local co-op with the Gamepad and a Pro Controller giving each player their own screen. All of the above, beats the hell out of Gears of Effect hoard mode multiplayer Mass Effect 3 had.

Mass Effect 3 ran out of ideas

Hoard mode is played out, we can all say that. But after the debacle that was Mass Effect 3’s endings, and the clear laziness on the development, it’s safe to say that Mass Effect 4 needs to innovate to earn back the trust from its fans. Doing the Hoard Mode again will not make up for what happen with Mass Effect 3. Mass Effect 4 is using the Frostbite 2 Engine and has a new development team within the Bioware Studios. Giving players more options out of either ‘good’ or ‘bad’ should be Bioware’s first priority when developing Mass Effect 4’s interactive story elements. Introducing more ways to tackle missions with different party members should also be a top priority. The ability to switch party members during a mission should also be included. Bioware could balance this by making players wait a finite amount of time before their new party member comes into play.

Mass Effect 4 has a lot to live up to. Its predecessors set a high bar for the Rpg-shooter. Bioware needs to focus on what made Mass Effect 2 so much better than Mass Effect 1, and apply those finding for Mass Effect 4. Eliminating the little Citadel fetch quests, truly committing to a campaign style co-op multiplayer, and innovating in the genre they helped advance, are my requests for Mass Effect 4. Hopefully Bioware listens to the fans and makes Mass Effect 4 an experience near flawless. I will also be sending this article straight to Bioware’s office, so I won’t stop till we get the best Mass Effect experience Bioware can deliver.

What are your suggestions for Mass Effect 4? I want to know! Put them in the comments below and don’t forget to become part of the Playeressence community.